To visit his entry on this site, first click on
National Aviation Hall of Fame to go to the homepage. Next, highlight and click on "Enshrinees List" at the lower left corner of the
page. You will find an alphabetical listing of all enshrinees on this page. Then highlight and click on his name.

The name of H. H. Arnold is found on the plaque pictured above among the 119 names of pioneer flyers
who trained at the Wright Brothers field at Huffman Prairie. To visit the page which lists all of the flyers, and which displays several
photographs of the memorial, just click on:

Ralph:
Here is a nice period postcard view taken at Belmont Park
in 1910 seated in his Burgess-Wright aeroplane. This is one of those wonderful
postcards published by Cole Brothers of Asbury Park, New Jersey who did
wonderful work of this particular early air meet
Jerry

In 1911 Arnold flew Wright plane at College Park, Md.,
where he was stationed after he became a pilot.
He held 29th flying license issued in the U.S.
From "Hap" Arnold Recollects
by H. H. ArnoldClipping from Life Magazine
Collection of Lester Bishop
Courtesy of David Balanky

ONLINE RESOURCES

If you search for "Hap' Arnold", using the Google search engine,
(6-4-10), you will find about 99,200 links! Among the most helpful are the following.

This biography is found on the official site of the U.S. Air Force and is very comprehensive and
detailed. It is a good place to start your search for more information on this fascinating man. You can access the
site by clicking on the title above.

An early United States Army aviator who directed the Air Corps throughout World War II and became the first Chief of Staff of the United
States Air Force. He was promoted to five-star rank of General of the Army by President Truman in 1944, joining Douglas MacArthur,
George C. Marshall, Dwight D. Eisenhower and Omar Nelson Bradley at that rank.

Editors Note: For the complete, fascinating story, click on Arlington National Cemetery.
You will also find biographies for many other of aviation's pioneers.

You will find an extensive collection of personal papers and many other items of interest.

Origins of Airpower
Hap Arnold's Early Career in Aviation Technology, 1903-1935
by Maj Dik Daso, USAF

Henry Harley Arnold was not supposed to enter the Army. His older brother, Thomas, was to attend West Point and continue the Arnold
family tradition of American military service that began during the War for Independence. Henry Harley, Hap's namesake and
great-great-grandfather, had been a private in the Pennsylvania militia. Another relative, Peter Arnold, fought with Gen George
Washington's army. Thomas G. Arnold, his grandfather, had been a nail maker who fought at the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil
War. Herbert, Henry's father, had been a physician during the Spanish-American War, serving in Puerto Rico in 1898. Despite
the military legacy, and after attending Penn State during the year prior to the West Point admission tests, Thomas rejected his parents'
persistent urging to attend West Point. So Henry Arnold, then called Harley, inherited the opportunity to carry on the family's military
heritage, which he did with great distinction.

Continued in great detail on the website.

This paragraph was excerpted from the article "Origins of Airpower" which I found on
the website of the Aerospace Power Chronicles. I recommend it most heartily to those of you who want to read the
rest of the story. You may reach it by clicking on the title of the article.

General Arnold died at his ranch home, Valley of the Moon, near Sonoma, Calif.,
Jan. 15, 1950.

If you have any more information on this pioneer aviator
please contact me.
E-mail to Ralph Cooper